A Cambridge Paedophile, Anthony Goodridge, whose “atrocious” sexual assault was fully revealed during a police interview has been sentenced to over twenty years in prison.
Anthony Goodridge, 59, perpetrated sexual assaults on two young girls, including a toddler, filmed another victim, and clandestinely recorded a fourth victim while she was showering and changing.
Anthony Goodridge was apprehended in October of the previous year after a girl disclosed information to a trusted individual.
During the police interrogation, he asserted that his contact with the girl, who was under ten years old at the time, was inadvertent and non-sexual. He attempted to attribute the abuse to another individual.
Two phones were seized when Anthony Goodridge was arrested, which were analysed and found to contain indecent images of children. In total there were 716 category C images, 356 category B images and 416 category A images – the most severe.
Amongst the material was a category C video and indecent images, which Anthony Goodridge had filmed himself, showing a different victim – a girl who was also under 10.
When further arrested on suspicion of making indecent images of children, Anthony Goodridge likened himself to a “junkie” when it came to material of that nature and said viewing the material was a “fantasy” and that he got a “high” from doing so because it was illegal, not because he gained any sexual pleasure.
Anthony Goodridge admitted taking video and photos of the girl naked, but claimed he didn’t think they were indecent as you couldn’t see all of her.
When asked again about the sexual abuse of his first victim, he changed his story and admitted he had touched her once, but not for sexual gratification.
When officers asked if he had sexually touched other children, he paused and then confessed to sexually assaulting another girl when she was two to three years old.
Anthony Goodridge told police he had restrained the toddler and sexually abused her before performing a sex act on himself – and he had filmed the entire incident on a camera.
A further video filmed in a bathroom, showing a teenage girl showering and getting changed, was also found on the devices. Before she entered the bathroom Anthony Goodridge was seen on the footage looking into the camera repeatedly and checking its position.
When interviewed about the footage Anthony Goodridge admitted to filming the teenager in 2016 and repeatedly stated that she was an “attractive young lady”.
Anthony Goodridge, of Ramsden Square, Cambridge, later admitted 16 offences including:
- Three counts of sexual assault on a girl under 13 by penetration
- Four counts of sexual assault on a girl under 13 by touching
- Six counts of making an indecent image of a child
- Two counts of taking indecent images of a child
- One count of voyeurism
He was sentenced at Peterborough Crown Court today (Wednesday, 9 October) where he was handed a total of 26 years in prison.
A restraining order preventing him from contacting his victims, and a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) to monitor future offending, were both made indefinitely.
Sentencing, Judge Matthew Lowe said Anthony Goodridge chose to gratify his “depraved sexual interest in children” with no regard to the consequences of this on others, prioritising acting on this interest above everything else.
Judge Lowe added that the number of victims, the amount of offences and the degree of planning involved in Goodridge’s behaviour highlighted his “entrenched and deep-rooted sexual interest in children”.
DC Molly Halksworth, from the force’s Child Abuse Investigation and Safeguarding Unit (CAISU), said: “Anthony Goodridge’s sexual abuse of his victims was nothing short of horrific; he abused their trust in the worst possible way.
“The full scale of his abuse only came to light when he was asked in interview if he had abused anyone else. What happened next, and the abuse he disclosed, is something hard to forget.
“We are pleased Anthony Goodridge has now been brought to justice and we hope the sentence imposed gives his victims and their families some closure from this traumatic period in their lives.
“Protecting young people from harm is one of our top priorities and we have specially trained officers who are there to support victims and bring offenders to justice.”
If you or anyone you know have been affected by the people highlighted in this article, then please report those individuals to the Police on 101 (999 if an emergency) or visit their online resources for further details of the options for reporting a crime. You can also make a report at Crimestoppers should you wish to be completely anonymous. There is help available on our support links page.